Brassiere



Dec, 4, 1945. M. wn-kowER BRASSIERE Filed Sept. 27, 1943 l12"\/ EJ171201" .01 a

x Witk awar- Patented Dec. 4, 1945 UNl'i'ED STATES ATENT OFFICE BRAssIERE Max Witkower, Los Angeles, Calif.

Application September 27, 1943, Serial No. 503,925

3 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in brassieres and relates particularly to that class of brassieres known as nursing brassieres.

In man forms of so called nursing brassieres, the arrangement of the brassiere for the nursing operation involves detaching of the parts in such a manner that the brassiere itself becomes disarranged. This is objectionable as it is most desirable to arrange the brassire for nursing with as little disarrangement of the brassiere as possible.

In the present invention, the brassiere is designed to have the appearance of an ordinary brassire when normally used and to have a simple arrangement of the parts so that the brassire, in so far as its position on the body and the shoulder straps position is concerned, remain in normal position on the body, when arranged for the nursing operation.

The object of my invention is to provide a brassire of the class described of simple form and appearance, such brassiere being provided with supporting means for the breast both when in normal use and during the nursing operation, the supporting means being of such character that it may be readily adjusted to accommodate the breasts of the wearer.

Other objects and advantages will appear hereinafter from the following specifications and drawing.

Referring to the drawing which is for illustrative purposes only,

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the front of a brassire embodying a form of my invention showing its position on the wearer during normal use;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged view of the brassiere shown in Fig. l, viewed from the front of the brassire and laid out in flat form, the breast pockets being opened; and

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2 but showing the inside of the front portion of the brassire.

Referring more particularly to the drawing, the brassiere consists of two breast pockets generally indicated at 5. These breast pockets are formed of two pieces of material sewed together along the medial line of the breasts as indicated at E. The inner of these pieces of material or what may be termed front panels, indicated at l, are joined together by suitable hooks and eyes, there being a set of eyes indicated at 8 on one breast pocket, and a series of hooks indicated at 9, on the other breast pocket. The pieces 1 of material or what may be called side panels, forming the outer portion of the breast pockets,

are narrowed at the outer ends to form bands indicated at H) which extend around the sides of the wearer to the back and conform to the sides and back of the wearer substantially at the elevation of ti e breasts. The outer ends of these bands are provided with tabs l! provided with securing means, one of the tabs being provided with a plurality of hooks indicated at 12, which are adapted to engage a series of eyelets l3 on the other tab, it being understood that the hooks 42 may be inserted in the corresponding eyelets to adjust the brassiere to the size of the wearer. These tabs may be made of webbing or elastic material.

Each of the breast pockets at their upper medial portion is provided with a fabric loop indicated at E5, which is adapted to engage a hook 55 on the front end of a shoulder strap indicated at H, th other end of the shoulder strap being secured to the back iii at the back of the brassiere by stitching or in any other suitable manner. 58 indicates a common form of adjusting member in the shoulder strap. The front end of each shoulder strap I1 is sewed to a ribbon or strip of fabric material 28, as indicated at 2%. One end of this ribbon 2D is secured by means of stitching or any other suitable manner to the upper portion of the breast pocket, preferably some distance to the side of the medial line of the breast pocket indicated at 5. The other end of th ribbon 2D is provided with an adjusting member 29' and is secured by an ordinary form of connecting eye, indicated at 22, to the upper end of a supporting strap 23. These supporting straps, in the form shown, increase in width downwardly and are attached at their lower ends to the lower portion of the opposite breast pocket along the medial line thereof as indicated at 25. These straps cross each other at the front medial line of the brassiere, the straps being attached at their lower ends to the breast pockets as just described and extending diagonally to the ribbon 213 on the upper portion of the opposite breast pocket.

When the brassiere is in normal use it has the appearance, on the wearer, as shown in Fig. 1. As shown in Fig. 3, th supporting straps 23 being crossed, the lower portion of one breast pocket through the medium of the supporting strap, attached thereto, is under tension upwardly to the upper portion of the breast pocket on the other side of the brassiere, the straps engaging under and supporting the breast from the point of attachment of the straps to the breast pockets.

When the nursing operation is to be performed it is to be understood that the hooks and eyes, 8 and 9, and the loop I on the upper portion of one of the breast pockets is removed from the hook IS on the lower end of the shoulder strap. When this is done the breast pocket assumes the position shown at the left side of Fig. 2, thereby exposing the right breast of the wearer for the nursing operation.

It is pointed out that while the brassire is being used, as just described, the supporting straps 23 remain in position and perform two functions, first, to continue supporting both of the breasts and at the same time insure that the shoulder straps remain in the same position as during normal wearing of the brassire. This not only makes a fastening of the breast pockets together as the nursing operation is completed a very simple matter, but also insures that the shoulder straps remain in the proper position on the shoulders and thereby prevents dislocation or movement of the brassiere on the wearer during the nursing operation.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a brassiere: a pair of breast pockets each terminating at the sides in a band adapted to extend around the body of the wearer; detachable securing means on the ends of the bands; detachable securing means for joining the breast pockets along the front medial line of the brassire; a pair of shoulder straps each having one end attached to the back portion of the brassire; a fabric strip attached intermediate its ends to the front end of each shoulder strip, one end of the fabric strips being secured to the upper portion of its associated breast pocket; a pair of supporting straps crossed intermediate their lengths having their lower ends attached to the lower portion of one breast pocket along the medial line thereof and having their upper ends attached to the other end of said fabric strip on the opposite shoulder strap; and means for detachably securing the upper portion of each breast pocket to its associated shoulder strap.

2. In a brassire: a pair of breastpockets each terminating at the sides in a band adapted to extend around the body of the wearer; detachable securing means on the ends of the bands; detachable securing means for joining the breast pockets along the front medial line of the brassire; a pair of shoulder straps each having one end attached to the back portion of the brassiere; a pair of breast supporting straps crossed intermediate their lengths each having their lower ends attached to the inside of the lower portion of one of the breast pockets along the medial line thereof and the upper end adjustably secured to the front end of the shoulder strap on the opposite side of the garment from the breast pocket to which it is attached; and means for detachably securing the upper portion of each breast pocket to its associated shoulder A strap.

3. In a brassire: a pair of breast pockets each terminating at the sides in a band adapted to extend around the body of the wearer; detachable securing means on the ends of the bands; detachable securing means for joining the breast pockets along the front medial line of the brassire; a pair of shoulder straps each having one end attached to the back portion of the brassire; a ribbon attached intermediate its ends to the front end of each shoulder strap, one end of the ribbon being secured to the upper portion of its associated breast pocket beyond the medial line of the breast pocket; a pair of supporting straps crossed intermediate theirlengths inside the breast pockets each having their lower end attached to the lower portion of one of the breast pockets along the medial line of the pocket and having their upper end adjustably secured to the ribbon on the opposite side of the garment from the breast pocket to which it is attached; and means for detachably securing the upper portion of each breast pocket to its associated shoulder strap.

MAX WITKOWER. 

